Thursday, January 08, 2009

Call me crazy but I'm making more bags. I had such fun making the last set that I decided to use up the rest of the upholstery type fabric and I got another two sets of bags out of it.I ran out of the pale green rayon for the lining so I am using some craft fabric I bought ages ago for the second set.I also had to make more bias tape for the larger bag. For a complete tutorial on how to make a batch of bias tape, go here, from March 8, 2008.Now I have just enough bias tape in both fabrics to make a large bag with each kind of lining.Here are all the pieces, waiting for me to get zippers for them. For the sharp-eyed, there is a bonus fifth bag in there. I just can't throw away even a small piece of fabric if it can possibly be turned into a bag. Tomorrow, I'll be getting the zippers. I was going to walk - it is "only" a 10 km round trip - but I am getting a ride instead by a fortuitous set of circumstances.

Tuesday, January 06, 2009

I'm rummaging around my sewing room, looking for things to make, fabric for some more bags as the last set were pretty popular. I spied the messy purple fabric I made a coat from last year and remembered I thought I could make a tam out of it. This time, I have a pattern which includes a tam but I have it in my mind that a trilby style hat would work and I have a pattern for that too.I'm using McCall's M5773 and decide to go with view F, the blue one with the brim. Actually, I really want to make view E in the red, using the red boiled wool from that jacket I recently finished. But I figure the purple wool will serve as a template and I can pitch it if I don't like it.It's very simple and I use some cream coloured lining scraps I have for the inside.I decide to interface one side of the brim, even though the pattern doesn't cal for it. This wool is very loose and I figure I can't go too wrong with interfacing.I get the crown of the hat put together and try it on and it's HUGE. I think it's the fabric, more than the pattern, so I take up one half of the crown seams by another 5/8 inch and it seems to work better. I sew the interfaced brim to the outside of the hat.I sew the lining to the other brim. Then I sew the hats together at the edge of the brims, leaving a small opening to turn them right side out. The hat sheds mightily each time I hold it.After I turn the hat, I sew around the brim, first to seal the open edges together, then to add rigidity to it, with a line of stitching about 1/4 inch from the edge stitching and one around where the lining joins the brim, to keep the lining at bay. It's not brilliant but it's okay and gives me hope that the red one will look better. And now of course, I have "the ensemble", with the coat and the hat. Hmm. At any rate, it is covering up my bald chemo head and that's the main thing. You can just see that I am wearing a blue skull cap under the hat. When I have hair again, it will fit over the the hair too.

Thursday, January 01, 2009

When I went up to my sewing room, I played around with some fabrics and patterns and put some things away and then thought, I'd like to make a couple of little bags to give away. At Christmas when she was here, Mum admired the bag I made as a pencil case for work so when I discovered I had a fair bit left of that upholstery fabric, I thought I would make one for her.I got out my trusty bag pattern (Simplicity 9949) and examined what bits of fabric I had.I had enough of the upholstery fabric for four bags and found some rayon that I had made a shirt out of that would be suitable for lining.I also used the rayon to make seam binding.It was a good plan when I put the seam binding on the one larger bag. I pinned one side over the stitching line and then sewed from the other, unpinned side.The idea was that because I had pinned it on the underside, I would catch that side of the seam binding when I sewed it from the other side. It worked all around the zipper but not on the ends so I had to sew it twice - the second time from the pinned side that had not caught in the first stitching.Consequently, the seam binding is a little rippley but it'll never come off!I'll put the smaller "pencil case" bag inside the larger one when I give it.And here's what they look like separately. That larger bag can hold a surprising amount of stuff. I just find it fun to make these things and then give them away. Mum will get one set and I think I know who will get the second set.

My third chemo is tomorrow so I may feel a little too crappy to sew for a few days, if it's like last time. I'm hoping it won't be but I am prepared to spend the rest of the day in bed.